Everything You Need to Know about Growing and Grooming Your Winter Beard

When it comes to winter scruff, just letting it “do its thing” for three months is a surefire way to wind up looking like a freight-hopping ragamuffin. Here’s what you need to know to grow it right, care for it lovingly, and (eventually) shave it with respect.

Step 1: Grow it

Give your beard a kickstart with the vitamins it needs. Beard champion and star of IFC’s Whisker Wars Jack Passion has a bunch of tips about exercise, diet, sleep, and gentle shampoo. Choice quote: “The times when I’ve been lifting weights and trail running are the times when I’ve basically been a beard-growing machine.”

Step 2: Care for it

Getting a bit itch as it fills out? Grab a good beard oil or elixir to condition the hair and soften it up. Complaints from your significant other about the scruff being unkissable? We’ve got solutions for that. Remember, even as it fills in, you’ve still got to keep that edges tidy. Here’s how to tame the neckbeard.